Hamas weighs dropping Gaza civilian gov't for military rule

Turkish media reports that Hamas is planning to change how it governs Gaza in preparation for military escalation with Israel.

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Dalit Halevi, 11/08/17 13:45

Hamas terrorists in Gaza

Abed Rahim Khatib/Flash 90

A senior Hamas official reported that leaders of Hamas' Al-Qassam Brigade have proposed a general plan to Hamas leadership intended to alleviate the unlivable conditions in Gaza, Turkey's Anadolu news agency said.

The plan contains four sections, and would create a political and security "vacuum" in Gaza, allowing for different options in Hamas' relations with Israel, including the military one.

The Fatah-run PA and Hamas have been at odds since 2007, when Hamas took over Gaza from Fatah in a bloody coup. At the time, Hamas threw Fatah terrorists off the roofs of tall buidings. All attempts to reconcile the sides have thus far failed.

An attempt at a unity government between Hamas and Fatah collapsed in 2015 when PA chairman Mahmoud Abbas decided to dissolve it amid a deepening rift between the sides.

Since the unity government was dissolved, Hamas and Fatah have held several rounds of reconciliation talks in Doha, Qatar. However, the sides reached only a partial agreement, since the PA rejected outright the idea of integrating Hamas and Islamic Jihad into its government.